I wanted to tackle the Madeleine via Montgellafrey as I hadn't done this climb before. It is a little back road but not that quiet. On paper the climb is just 7.7% over 13km.

Been quite a while since I've cycled this way. Surprisingly slow. 1m04 for the climb to St Hilaire, record is 49 minutes (vam of 800m/h).

Cycling in the fag end of the year becomes pretty much opportunistic but some unexpected good weather gave me the chance to scratch two itches, a long ride (well long for me) and to visit an unknown s

Nice climb this morning but got lost in Quarno Sopra before finding the road to Camasca - very hard in places, it must be around 18-20% max, chain was making a nasty noise.

Rode to the end of the road at Alpe Busca this year. There is no real view from the top - a small shrine with a fountain of very pleasant water, just mountains.

I'd never done the climb to the Granier via la Petite Montagne before and neither had Mike who lives near the foot of the climb.

North to South, or South to North? That is the question and it is not entirely simple to resolve.

The idea was to take the road above Luzzogno towards Alpe Busca as far as it is surfaced. But I was unsure of the route above Luzzogno so took the Inuggio road instead.

I was surprised to see that the main road is the one that goes to the lac St Guerin and the climb to the Col de Pré is just a backroad.

Note: this road is closed in the winter months. It is also poorly surfaced before the main Allevard road.This used to be a departmental road but has been abandoned to the elements for a dozen years.